Heading South for the Winter

I got a call from Luke a couple of weeks before Christmas. He had unused sick time. Winter break for me. Three days later we were on our way to Florida. Off on an adventure. I'm a road trip junkie. Any chance I have to hit the road I take it. After a late night drive to Nashville and my dog nearly killing my brother's roommate we made our way through Tennessee, Alabama, and finally Florida. But before we made it to the campsite we stopped at the Gator Café. Lured by the idea of eating wild game we stopped by the diner. I had a patty-melt and a milkshake. We reached Henderson state park which was closed. Quick brainstorming session. We parked Luke's car at a hotel and snuck into the camp site. After we set up camp we ran to the beach where I took the above shot of Luke. Hook was going nuts. He's never been out of the state let alone on a sandy beach. The next day we rented a boat for an hour at Luther's boat rentals and rode out into the bay. A pod of about 40 dolphins were feeding in the shallows. They made several passes by the boat. Luther Jr. Gave us the inside scoop on food and beer. The Marina Café and McGuire's Irish pub. I've never had a more delicious fish sandwich in my life. The jalapeño hush puppies were amazing. A welcome break from Waffle House (my brother's favorite). McGuire's brews their own beer. We got a six pack of the Irish red. The also have over $600,000 in singles stapled to the walls. Interesting place. Back to the camp site to discover my keys had gone missing while searching for fire wood. Panic set in and I might have said a few cure words. The last thing I wanted was to get back to Nashville and not be able to start my car. Luckily my brother with a stroke of genius suggested we take a trip to the local dealership. I was back in business with two copies of my key in half an hour. Lucky break. The rest of the time in Destin we spent laying on the beach or collecting seashells. It reminded me of my childhood and our weekly trips to Corona Del Mar. We had some strangers snap a photo and the next day we were on our way home. I spent the night in Nashville and drove four hours back to Cincinnati and went straight to work. Three days in Florida isn't much. But when you are wearing shorts and a t-shirt on a beach while everyone back home is donning winter gear it makes the whole excursion worth it.